Currently cryptography is used to securely transmit and receive data within a network. The problem is that encrypting and decrypting data requires a large number of processor cycles, therefore slowing the entire performance of the processing system. The trend has been to off load the crypto engines onto the network adapters or have specialized non-network crypto adapters.
The problem with specialized network crypto adapters is that they are currently tied to a specific protocol and they require the replacement of existing hardware, i.e., the existing non-crypto network adapter. The problem with using specialized non-network crypto-adapters is that the data must cross the bus two extra times. The network adapter brings the data into system memory, but the system must push the data out to the specialized crypto adapter and bring back the encrypted/decrypted result back.
Accordingly, what is needed is a system and method that overcomes the above-identified problems. The system and method should be cost effective, easy to implement, and adaptable to existing processing systems. The present invention addresses such a need.